In February 2023, the state forest department and district administration of Sonitpur district in Assam conducted an eviction drive to clear Burhachapari Wildlife Sanctuary and its surrounding areas from encroachers.
The drive, which lasted for three days from February 14 to February 16, 2023, resulted in the eviction of over 2513 households.
The district administration said that the encroachers had illegally occupied a total of 1,892 hectares of government land, including 1,401 hectares of the wildlife sanctuary.
Sonitpur deputy commissioner (DC) Deba Kumar Mishra told LCW that a total of 2,513 families were residing in the encroached area and they were issued notices to vacate the land before carrying out the eviction drive. He said of the 1,892 hecatres, 1,401 hectares fall in the sanctuary and the remaining is government land.
According to the DC, as per the latest survey, in the forest, 1,758 families comprising 6,965 people lived in the forest and a total of 755 families comprising 4645 people resided on the government land.
He further said over 1,700 personnel from the Assam Police and CRPF, along with staffers from civil administration and the forest department, were engaged in the eviction drive.
Hundreds of houses built by the evicted people were dismantled and crops cultivated by them were destroyed by the administration.
The DC said around 100 bulldozers, excavators and tractors were pressed into action to demolish the structures including dwelling houses, schools, mosques, and Anganwadi centres and clear the land.
The eviction drive was met with protests from some of the affected people. ** **
While speaking to LCW, some of the evicted people alleged that they had not been given prior notice of the eviction and that they had not been allowed to bring their belongings with them.
Firoza Begum, another evicted woman, alleged that the administration had said that the eviction will start on February 20, but began it on February 14 without any prior intimation.
Many of these evicted families included a large number of students who were about to sit for the Higher Secondary and Matriculation examinations. Amir Hussain, an evicted person, told LCW that many candidates who lost their books and documents due to eviction could not sit for the examinations.
A petition was filed in the Gauhati High Court challenging the eviction drive, but the court disposed of the petition with a direction that eviction can be carried out in the forest land for now, and in revenue land it can be carried out after the boundaries are determined.
Earlier, the village head of Dhania village adjacent to the wildlife sanctuary urged the authorities to free the wildlife sanctuary from encroachment.
In a recent development, the forest department claimed that the evicted people were attempting to resettle in the area again. On 17 July, 2023, a confrontation started between the two parties when the Divisional Forest Officer of Nagaon Wildlife, Jayanta Deka, led his team to the area. During the brawl, a forester and two home guards sustained injuries, while one person named Khatun was killed in “retaliatory firing”. Further, three of her relatives also sustained injuries.
On 16 July, 2023, the family members had allegedly set up tarpaulin in the area where their house was demolished. Farida Khatun, who is the niece of the deceased, stated that due to heavy rainfall in the area, they had set up temporary shelter using tarpaulin and were staying there with their cattle.
The forest officials, however, claimed that this was a method by those evicted to take back the government land and resettle in the area.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Demand for rehabilitation
Demand to retain/protect access to common land/resources
Complaint against procedural violations
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Region Classification
Rural
Type of Land
Common
Forest and Non-Forest
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Other Natural Resource extraction/dependence, Residential area
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
Type of investment:
Year of Estimation
Has the Conflict Ended?
No
When did it end?
Why did the conflict end?
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
No
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Non-rehabilitation of displaced people
Forced evictions/dispossession of land
Non-consultation with stakeholders
Legal Status:
In Court
Status of Case In Court
Disposed
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
No
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
Gauhati High Court
Case Number
WP (C) 881/2023
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Displacement
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
No
Reported Details of the Violation:
People residing in the area were rendered homeless as authorities dismantled their houses. Authorities did not provide them with any alternative shelter.
Date of Violation
February 13, 2023
Location of Violation
Sitalmari village
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Assam Environment and Forests departement , Assam Revenue and Disaster Management Department, Sonitpur District Administration
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
Yes
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
All Assam Minority Students Union (AAMSU)
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
Mahesh is a journalist based in Guwahati, Assam. He is currently a senior copy editor in Northeast Now (nenow.in), a bilingual news portal covering Northeast India. He has formerly worked as a senior reporter in Eastern Chronicle, an English daily published from Kolkata and Guwahati, and as a senior sub editor in The Sentinel, an English daily published from Guwahati. He is a recipient of the National Media Award presented by the National Foundation for India, New Delhi. Mahesh has completed five media fellowships on diverse issues in the Northeastern region and translates from English to Assamese and vice versa. His translated work so far is Prachanda: Maobadi Bidrohor Anya Naam.
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